The Meltons

It all started with the Grands (Joe & Linda) snagging Aylin for some summer fun. They wisked her away Thursday afternoon with plans to go to Silver Dollar City Friday. That left Jeff and I to have some fun date night time! Friday night we walked downtown (Bentonville) and had a drink a piece at Scotch & Soda while having some good chat/connection time. We also enjoy people watching so we sat outside on the patio by the sidewalk. After drinks we moseyed down to Table Mesa for dinner, and as usual we were stuffed silly and enjoyed ourselves immensely. The next morning over coffee on the back porch Jeff suggested we take a day trip, I’d mentioned a while ago it would be fun to go back to Mt. Nebo where we first met and later married. Sipping coffee on the porch Saturday morning Jeff thought since we were kid free why not have a little adventure and go back to Mt. Nebo! So we got around, packed a picnic lunch and some sun screen and swim suits (just in case we wanted to splash around somewhere along the way) and were on our way to Russellville!

We took the long way via the Pig Trail and enjoyed the ride and the company. Once there we got to snap a few photos, but since there was a wedding getting set up we couldn’t go inside the pavilion we married in. Who can blame them, though? It’s a gorgeous spot for a wedding! We ate our picnic lunch and then found our way to sunset point (panoramic pic above) where Jeff and I spent a lot of time during our first date. 

Then Jeff says to me; “what do you think about hopping over to Hot Springs for the night”? Ummm Yes! So he looked up some B&B’s and made a call and they had a room available! So we made our way to this gorgeous Bed & Breakfast just a half mile off of the strip in Hot Springs. He also tried to get me an appointment for a massage but everyone was already booked up for the weekend. 

We arrived at the B&B and realized we had nothing for an overnight stay (phone chargers, tooth brushes, change of clothes...), so after getting settled in we made a quick trip to Walmart for some necessities. 

Next we walked down to the strip to find some place to eat dinner. We attempted a place called The Vault but found thy were reservations only and booked for the night. So we walked a few doors down and found The Porterhouse and dined there. Dinner there was underwhelming, but the company was great. It would take a lot for dinner out with my sweetie to be a bad date night. After dinner we walked the strip a bit and decided to stop in at an old Bath House turned Brewery and have some drinks! Superior Bath House Brewery had a great little patio section so we could sip and people watch and let me tell you, there was so much entertainment on the sidewalks. 

After drinks we walked the strip some more. We thought about getting dessert, but decided against waiting in a ginormous line at Fat Bottom Girls Cupcakes. We did, however, have some fun trying on hats in this fun little hat shop. 

After our adventures on the strip we walked back to our B&B and snagged a piece of cake from the main house to bring back to our room and enjoy a soak in the bath with a glass of wine and some cake. It. Was. Glorious. 

The next morning we had a leisurely sleep in before heading to breakfast. Breakfast was amazingly delicious with homemade apple strudel, eggs and bacon. Then we took our coffee and sat in a rather posh sitting room to enjoy a slow morning. 

Then we gathered up to go retrieve our Ginger Girl from the Grandparents. On our way out of town we hit up a fun little coffee shop called Red Light Coffee Company. I had a lavender latte and Jeff had his usual vanilla latte. We’ll definitely need to go back, they had a huge front porch that would be wonderful to sit and enjoy your coffee from. 

Once we got to Harrison we met the crew out on the farm where they were playing on 4 wheelers. So we joined in on that fun. Then we got to help wrangle and herd the goats. Aylin even got to help by holding a goat while sitting on the back of Lala’s 4 wheeler. The goat needed some medical assistance so Lala wrangled the goat and then Aylin held on to it until they could get it to Papa Joe. 

All in all, it was a memorable and fun weekend! Jeff and I both feel blessed to have been able to get a fun, unexpected romantic getaway in. 

You Guys. I am so blown away by these photos Heather Kleber (Heather Kleber Photography) took of our family. She is amazing, and super sweet and we had so much fun with her. And because words just do not do them justice, without further ado, the photos:

Family Shots:

Jeff & Teena:

Aylin & Mom/Dad:

Aylin:

**GRANDPARENTS - You will be receiving info soon about how you can get some of these lovely photos. <3 xoxo

Welcome to the September Snapshot! Here's a glimpse into what we've been up to recently:

Jeff went to Chicago for most of a week for his Renovare Cohort. He had an amazing week of intense learning and digging deep into Spiritual Disciples. The Cohort met and stayed at the University of St. Mary's of the Lake. It was a bit strange for Aylin and I to not have Jeff around; thankfully up until now Jeff hasn't had to do any travel without Aylin and I aside from his trip to Honduras a couple of years ago. We managed just fine while he was gone, but it felt weird not to have him around. We like having our Hairy Guy around. 

While he was gone I did some crafting, and organizing; I finally got around to decorating the room we have dubbed Spare 'oom, and I also got around to organizing the office. I got a lovely mom's weekend when Grandma Linda asked to take Aylin for the weekend and spoil the little monkey at Silver Dollar City. Plus I got to do a little shopping for some smaller clothes!!!

I hit some fun milestones with my weight-loss journey. Not only did I break down and finally buy some smaller clothes, but I love the way my clothes fit/look/feel for the first time in a long time. I hit an all time low (lower than I hit 4 years ago when I started trying to run), and have erased more than 10 years of weight yo-yoing from my body! It's been hard work, but it feels so so so SO good!

Aylin had some fun school happenings in September. The school did a Fun Run fundraiser and Aylin won Student of the Week.

The month of August was jam packed with all sorts of exciting things. Here's a glimpse into all the goings-on at the Casa de Melton.

While celebrating Laura's birthday; we introduced Aylin to the fun, spunky town of Eureka. We enjoyed poking around in shops and I thoroughly embarrassed Aylin by putting on a purple yarn wig. It was so fun, I really think I ought to go back and purchase it. We tried on all sorts of festive headgear... Aylin also enjoyed entertaining her sweet little cousin Eliza at the restaurant.

Aylin started FOURTH GRADE!!! She's Big Girl on Campus this year, and they start getting a taste for Middle School next year with having a Homeroom Teacher and a separate teacher for Literacy. She is loving it so far. 

I bought myself a paper planner for the first time since owning a smart phone. It has helped tremendously in ordering all the things that swirl around in my head. Plus it has lots of fun stickers, one can't go wrong with stickers. 

We decided to head over to Jenks, OK and visit the aquarium. We hadn't been there since Aylin was 3 or 4, so it was fun to go back and see things with our Big Kid. We saw all kinds of incredible things; a giant sea tortious, river otters, a beaver, sting rays, a giant octopus, pregnant sea horses, sharks, glowy coral, there was a super cool exhibit with electric eels where it had a speaker so you could hear the electric charges as well as a meter so you could see the voltage!

Jeff and I have both had scale victories this month; and both of us able to fit into smaller clothes that we hadn't worn in a while. Further proof that sticking to meal planning and healthy eating and exercise is finally working for both of us at the same time. It's not an easy journey, but it is so worth it. 

Little Brother decided to move to Charlotte and say Au Revoir to Bentonville, so Little Sis came to help him with driving. I had a little farewell dinner before they drove out.

Another family fun weekend was a trip over to Blanchard Springs Cavern near Mountain View, AR. I did not take an photos because it would have been hard for me to do so in the low light of the caves and o figured the website had better photos than I could take any way. So do click over and see a bit of what we went through. We went on two cave tours; the Dripstone Trail and the Discovery Trail. Both were truly magnificent. The Dripstone Trail was an easier stroll with decently lit walkways and handicap accessible. The Discovery Trail, however, was a fast paced tour up and down wet stairs with metal handrails slick with bat dung. There were a few places I had a little trouble with my vision, but between a cane* that we purchased in the gift shop, and following behind Jeff and Aylin so I could watch where they were and how they stepped I managed alright. We started out with the more easy Dripstone Trail, then headed into Mountain View for a bite of lunch and found a little BBQ joint, then headed back to Blanchard Springs Caverns to do the harder Discovery Trail. Even though it was a challenging tour I was really glad we did it. It truly is amazing to see the awesome things that happen below the surface of the earth. A few thoughts from Jeff on our trip to the caves. Once we were done with our tours of the caves we matched up with Papa Joe and Grandma Linda in Yellville for more BBQ. One can never have too much BBQ. 

*It seems to be that we've started a tradition of sorts where I intend to bring my cane somewhere and then forget it, or think "Bah, I'll be fine. I don't need it" and then realize that I'd do better with one. So at this point I now have 4 canes. My white tip blind guide cane, a wood hiking stick, and 2 metal adjustable hiking sticks. This now begs the question as to whether or not I should get an umbrella rest to store all my various canes in. Maybe even find a way to creatively label them. "Blanchard Springs Cavern Cane", "Chimney Rock, Colorado Cane", etc. 

And a few random  snippets from the month:

And so ends the exciting journeys of the Melton Clan for August!

Here's a quick fly-by of the month of July at Casa de Melton

We had some people over on the 4th, we ate lots of food and had lots of fun catching the fireworks over the trees and lighting a few ourselves. Kids got wet, bellies got filled, and lots of words and laughs were loosed.

We had a rather exciting weekend where our landlord had new flooring installed. Of course nothing went according to plan, and so we had to be flexible. Initially it was only supposed to take 5 hours, and the flooring company was going to show up between 10-11. So that gave Jeff and I time to get up and about and have coffee then start moving as much furniture out of carpeted areas as possible. Well the flooring company showed up at 9, so we scurried about to try and get a few more things done before getting out of the way. To pass some time we decided to visit Lake Atalanta and Jeff went for a walk around the lake while I hung out with the Monkey while she played. She had a blast until she encountered a bee, which she managed to swat onto her belly and get stung. From there we got smoothies for lunch and killed some time. Then we had some cats who we were cat sitting for so we decided to head over there and give some attention to the felines. After that we headed back to the house since we were past the 5 hour mark. We came back to a lot of work still needing to be done and we were seriously doubting whether we would be able to sleep in our own beds that night. I messaged with the friend whose cats we were watching and asked if we could be weird and take showers at their house so we could go to church that evening and hope hope hope that when we came home from church they would be done with floors. Thankfully, they were done when we got home, and we were able to sleep in our own beds and the new floors look great.

As I sit in the shade on a bench at a park while my monkey swings her little heart out, I’m reminded of how fortunate we are to be living downtown in a newly vibrant community. There are positives and negatives to a growing city, but generally the experience has been really good for our little family. I enjoy being able to be a thriving social introvert and engaging with people when I want to and as I’m able, and then hiding in a hole when I need to as well. I hope that over the next several years as the area continues to grow that we don’t lose the charm and sense of community that we still have.

Having said that - here’s a little recap of what we’ve been up to this last month! 

The Blubie (Blue Subie, like that?), got a few accessories so that we can haul bike(s) & other things™️. While the Bearded Guy assembled & mounted the bike rail and cargo basket, The Ginger Girl used one of the giant shipping boxes to make herself a car. 

The Ginger Girl and I spent the day at the Amazeum, and she looooved the giant tunnel and slide that was made entirely of clear tape!  It was pretty amazing. She also found a Pegasus in the “how gears work” area and may have spazzed a bit. 

Something we've been praying about and chewing on for quite some time now was Jeff attending the Renovaré program. You can read more about it here. But a few fun/interesting points are:

1) it's a direction that our church is also moving towards

2) it's something we started saving for but then the car stuff happened and that whole picture changed

3) Jeff got a preliminary acceptance but was told he may not be in this next cohort due to space. On the last day he was supposed to get a decision one way or another when we were starting to question if this was the next step for us or not - he finally got the acceptance letter and was invited to this years program.

It's been an exciting and interesting journey. We are curious to see what God has in store for us in this next phase. But generally what this means is that over the next 2 years Jeff will be going through their Spiritual Formation program that is an online and in person program. Twice a year he'll make the trek to Chicago for their in person sessions, and throughout the year he'll have books to read, papers to write, and group discussions to participate in. 

Aylin got to go to Camp Grandma where they took her to Silver Dollar City and rode coasters and other fun rides, then they went back to Branson for shopping and Go-Carts and Bumper Boats. Plus they went swimming (maybe in the Buffalo). I think they all had a blast and were thoroughly worn out by the end of the week. While Jeff and I got a little Peace and Quiet™️. I even got a momma's night in (hello sappy movies, tissues, and wine!!) while Jeff had a Bachelors Party to attend. It was also very well timed because the day Grandma texted to see if they could wisk the monkey away Aylin had been getting a case of the Bored Summer Blues™️ and was beginning to drive me bonkers. 

We bought a slip-n-slide and had some wet fun!

The Friday before Father’s Day we got a phone call from Linda that Joe (Jeff’s dad) had been in a wreck with the four-wheeler out on the farm and was on his way to the hospital. They were getting ready to move cattle and while driving up hill the toolbox on the front of the four-wheeler came loose and flew back towards Joe's head. In an attempt to avoid the toolbox he lost control of the vehicle and ended up pinned under it. Ultimately he ended up in a lot better shape than he should have under the circumstances. He fractured his pelvis on both sides but no injuries that required surgery. He spent several days in the hospital before being released to a rehab facility since he wasn’t where he could move around on his own just yet. However as of his birthday (July 3rd!) he has made it home! It will be a long, slow recovery but we are all thankful and grateful that he is 1) alive, and 2) not hurt more than he is. 

For Father’s Day I surprised both The Bearded Guy and his Sidekick with an excursion on the Eureka Springs & North Arkansas Railway! I got us all tickets for the lunch train and it was super fun hanging out with these cheese balls. We also showered our favorite guy with cheesy gifts, and yummy food because that’s how we roll. 

The Ginger Girl has had lots of fun playing in the sun.

Shenanigans 

Year 2 of CWE fun! Due to rain (and soggy parking areas) we weren’t able to stick around and get Aylin set up in her cabin. But she wasn’t phased by it a bit. She was SUPER excited for camp. I had been a little disappointed because I wasn’t seeing pictures of her throughout the week, then on Friday the picture that I did finally get I got worried because I thought she’d been crying. {worried momma} Turns out they had been told to look they were doing the craft even though they didn’t yet have their supplies; so her face was actually confused/blank and not sad. So fake candids don’t really work. All in all she had a blast. She did tons of new things: tennis, archery, candle making, soft ball, fishing, aqua ball. She had 2 friends from last year’s cabin that were in her cabin again this year (yay for friendly faces). She spent a ton of time in the water, I think most of her mish-mash time (free time each afternoon where they get to choose what they want to do) was spent in one of the many pools/cove/river. She raved about the food and how she got to have cherry cokes and dessert at lunch every day. All-in-all it sounds like she had the best year yet at camp. We are so glad that we are fortunate enough to have the opportunity for her to go to such a great camp. It’s been a tremendous opportunity for growth in great ways (both for her and for momma). Aylin growing in confidence and independence, momma growing in letting her baby go and giving her space to blossom. Particularly after my little freak out Friday worrying about my baby all to find that it was NBD and all was well.  

AND while the Monkey was away The Bearded Guy and I got to go on several dates! We had a first for us: in 15 years of being together (that’s right! We had our first date on Mt. Nebo in Russellville June 2003!) we had never been to dinner and a movie! We also experienced our first movie with reclining seats - I don’t get to drag him to a movie very often. Aside from our dinner and a movie we opted for apps and adult beverages at Tusk & Trotter, and Table Mesa. It’s fun to get to do date nights with my guy. 

It's that time again - for my monthly recap!

Aylin and I moseyed through First Friday and she got her face painted (she loved it...)

We decided to take the Soobie out on some dirt roads and go for a couple of hikes. Turns out going on two back-to-back hikes so soon after being released back to normal duty from my surgery restrictions maybe wasn't such a wise idea. We got not quite out to the lookout on Hawks Bill Crag when I started to crash hard - dizzy, weak, out of breath. Jeff to the rescue - he ran ahead of Aylin and I back to the car to get more water and a granola bar while Aylin and I began slowly working our way back. We all slept good that night.  

Aylin earned one final "Off-The-Charts" for the school year, and got to make cupcakes with our sweet neighbor. They had so much fun and sprinkles were applied generously. Then Aylin and I topped it all off with an ice cream cone reward. 

My Loves generously spoiled me this year for Mother's Day - Aylin made my breakfast, she also made my a bracelet and a painted clay jewelry holder, plus they got me a fabulous Star Wars t-shirt, a Bob Ross figurine, and the most amazing vacuum ever a Shark! We also went out to dinner at Fish City where I thought I'd be adventurous and try clams - I tried them, and my curiosity has been satisfied. They are *not* something I will be trying again. 

We also put new flowers in the window boxes as well as the front triangle garden. 

I (Teena) started back at regular Zumba classes at the DAC. It was hard at first, but it has been fun to get back into it. It's also tremendously satisfying to troll Aylin with all my dance moves and to "ruin" her favorite songs with my moves. So. Much. Fun.

Aylin showed off her skills on her new recorder from school.

We found us a new hiking trail - Smith Creek Preserves - with waterfalls and a creek to play in, it was so beautiful! We found a huge, thick vine hanging over the trail and decided to swing like monkeys. 

We finally got the telescope out and viewed the big beautiful Full Moon. Aylin had a blast! Then later on Jeff and I were able to see Jupiter and 3 of it's moons. It's so incredible to be able to see those things so closely with so much detail. 

Last but not least we finally got to have our Last Day of School. 3rd grade is officially in the bag! 

Aylin’s School put on a 3rd Grade Spring Concert last night. I didn’t get amazing videos - from where I sat the lighting for my phone ended up washing them out. But you’ll get the general idea. Aylin got tons of complements on her pretty dress, and if you can manage to spot her in the videos she is front and center on the bottom row. I don’t know if you can catch him on my videos or not, but there’s a super fun kiddo on the front right he’s got on a green long sleeved shirt and he was super expressive - he was super fun to watch. 

April was an interesting month at the Melton casa. It was the coldest April ever recorded for NWA, we even got a bit of snow. It was often slow (and a bit boring) for me - as I was on physical restrictions post surgery. But we did have a bit of excitement.

We had a pretty low key Easter between cold and wet weather, and me being low energy from surgery recovery. Aylin had a lot of fun and enjoyed coloring eggs, as well as some fun things in her Easter basket.

So that's a wrap for the month of April!

A quick recap of the Melton Casa happenings for the month of March:

Jeff and I celebrated 13 years of married bliss (and by bliss I mean hard work, laughter, tears, highs and lows). We celebrated with an actual date night out and a babysitter. We did lovely things - like had a nice dinner out (we went to Copelands, which we reminisced that once upon a time Copeland's was one of the few nice restaurants in the area), then we went for dessert at Bentonville Baking Company followed by coffee at Onyx. 

We also got to see a bunch of brand new lambs out on Papa Joe's farm. Let me tell you, they are just as precious as you can imagine. They really do jump and hop around, and watching them frolic is just the cutest thing, and they are SO FLUFFY.

I spent a good portion of the first half of the month pre-occupied by my (Teena) upcoming surgery. I poured my nervous energy into deep cleaning the house; getting everything as ready as possible for me to be out of commission for a bit. I had a hard time settling my brain because I didn't know what to expect, and the not knowing had me struggling. Jeff and Aylin were rock stars, though, and helped, and loved me through the chaos in my brain. We were thrown for a bit of a loop when we went in for my pre-op appointments and found out that the nurse who had told me the procedure would be outpatient and I would be home the same day - well she was wrong. Turns out all patients actually have to stay overnight after the procedure, which makes sense, and ultimately was a good thing. But it meant that we had to once again change plans for Aylin. But rock-star Grama Linda came to the rescue and even though it was her anniversary she met up with us to take Aylin for a few nights.

Spring Break: In spite of my surgery taking up a lot of brain space, Aylin got to have some fun. On Monday while I had my pre-op appointments Aylin got to go have a fun day with one of my sweet Taxi Ladies; she took Aylin to Chick-Fil-A, then they went and painted ceramics, and then they went out to lunch at The Crumpet. Topping all that off with a few nights with the grandparents (Shopping with Grama, lunch at Freddy's, and more baby lambs!) and it turned out to be a decent Spring Break after all for The Ginger Girl. 

Jeff and Aylin took (and still are!) such great care of me after surgery. Aylin waited on me hand and foot on Friday after coming back from her time with her grandparents. She stepped up her game big time by helping with laundry and dishes. We have been so proud of her and her willingness to help out around the house. She's a pretty great kiddo; we're lucky to have her. In some of my down time I did a little painting. I will likely do some more over the next few weeks since I'm not allowed to lift much, or do any strenuous exercise. It's been hard to _not do_ things because I've been feeling so good after surgery that it seems like I should be able to just pick up where I left off. But I get easily tired, and that reminds me that my body is still healing. So for now I have to find a happy medium between doing things I do have the energy for, and letting Jeff and Aylin pick up where I can't. They've been pretty amazing. Now I just need to find enough things to keep me occupied over the next few weeks until I'm fully healed. Aside from Netflix (which has gotten a lot of airtime the last couple of weeks) suggestions as to how to fill my time are welcome! And so are visits, and coffee meet-ups! 

A big THANK YOU to all those who helped out in so many ways last month, either with Aylin or with meals, or your checking in and spending time with me/us. It's all been such a huge blessing, and we have felt very loved on and cared for.